Beauty and her Bag: Gabbi Garcia

Gabbi Garcia

… a.k.a Alena, the Water Gem Keeper

Kickstarting the return of my Beauty and Her Bag series with the ladies of the top nightly primetime show, Encantadia. I’ve seen the show a few times but never really kept up with the story. Basically, it revolves around the story of the four supernatural Sang’gre warrior sisters who are keepers of their kingdom’s powerful gems each controlling fire, air, water, earth. Gabbi plays the Keeper of the Water Gem. This gem grants its keeper the power to control water. It enhances the keeper’s strength and enables her to control biosonar, liquids and even sea creatures. It also enables its keeper to summon rain and portray an image through water.

For this special interview, I went to one of the studios where Encantadia films here in the city. I was excited to meet the girls and get to know their beauty secrets – but I was equally as excited to see the set, the production design and the filming set-up. I wasn’t disappointed. It was surreal seeing their intricately-designed costumes up close, the magnificent man-made forest and the ornate props used for the show. It actually made me want to watch and keep up with the show after this visit. But I digress..

For now, it’s time to satisfy our ‘chismosa‘ sides and see what Gabbi packs in her bag! As I entered the room (where the cast prep for hair and makeup or chill when they are in between takes), I saw Gabbi lying down on her personal cot covered in leopard print blankets scrolling through her phone, probably checking social media (because what else do we do with our phones nowadays? Hehe). I was introduced to her and she greeted me with her arresting smile (like the one above) that the time I spent in traffic, stressed and anxious if I’d make it on time, suddenly washed away (her water powers must’ve worked their magic! Oh, wait. Their powers aren’t real? Are you sure?).

Gabbi has been in the showbiz industry for three years and counting. She started in GMA when she was 15 years old – all while studying High School. She graduated early on this year and has chosen to take a break to focus on her acting. She still plans to pursue her studies after a year, maybe when her career isn’t as busy as it is now. I was quite surprised to learn what she wanted to be if she weren’t an actress (and maybe what she’ll be pursuing when she finally has the time!) – a pilot. For now, she’s happy to be able to focus on commanding the waters in her kingdom.

Her role in Encantadia as Alena portrays her as the romantic and carefree one among the four sisters. She maintains that she “lives to love” and is in a quest to find the person who will complete her. I asked if in real life she resembles anything about her character and she thinks she’s quite a bit like Alena especially being carefree – and that she lives to love – not just in the romantic sense but in all aspects. “I’m a lover, not a fighter!“, she quips.

Do you spy the brushes Gabbi uses? She has one full kikay kit!

“I’m a nude lipstick type of girl!”

What are three items you won’t leave your house without? The three things here that I absolutely can’t leave the house without.. Hmm. Not including my phone… I’d pick my perfume – Versace Bright Crystal, Avene Eau Thermale facial mist and my Gluta-C moisturizer/sunscreen. It’s super lightweight and I know the harsh, aging effects of the sun so sunscreen is a must.

Share your off-duty no-taping work look. For my everyday makeup, I really don’t put on that much. I prefer to let my skin show than put on foundation. So I only use my concealer, my cheektint or my blush on, then I curl my lashes. After, I put on lip tint or my liquid lipstick – which depends on my mood that day. But those are my two options usually – a lip tint or a liquid matte lipstick. If I have a long day, I’ll go for the liquid matte since it stays on my lip for the whole day.

Are you a pink or a red lipstick girl? I think nude – nude type of girl ako. Hehe! So what’s your favorite nude lipstick? My favorite nude lipstick is.. hmmmm. Probably a tie between Sellout from Too Faced and Exposure by Kylie.

Are you Team Matte of Team Gloss? Oh my god.. depends! But, I’d have to go with Team Matte in the meantime because this *points to her lips and shows her liquid matte lipstick*

She is bare-faced on this set of photos, you guys. Only lipstick and mascara on! Natural beauty, much?!

How do you remove all the gunk on your face at the end of the day? At the end of the day, I use cold cream to remove my makeup. It feels so refreshing after!

Do you double cleanse? Yup, I still follow with my facial wash after removing everything with the cold cream.

What’s your skin type? Hmmm, I’m not oily so I guess I have normal skin type.

What’s your skincare routine then? Before I sleep, I make sure to remove all traces of makeup. As I mentioned earlier, I use cold cream and then wash off with my facial cleanser after. Then, I follow it up with a toner. And then face mask every night! Yup, every night!

Any beauty advice? Personally, ever since, I don’t drink soft drinks or powdered juices. I stick to water. I think that’s the best advice my mom has given me. And not to ever sleep with makeup on! No matter how tired I am, I always make sure to clean my face and remove everything!

Catch Gabbi as Alena on Encantadia weekdays at 8PM!
Watch the full video below for a behind-the-scenes look on our little chit chat!

7 Comments

She’s very pretty! I love her MK wallet (will be on the look out for it now!). It’s funny that she mentioned cold cream as a make up remover. It’s been around for ages and recently started gaining some attention again from the beauty community! Can’t wait to for the next Beauty and Her Bag 🙂